Broad-Spectrum Antivirals of Coronaviruses Replication
A special issue of Viruses (ISSN 1999-4915). This special issue belongs to the section "SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 34647
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
In light of the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 and, consequently, the COVID-19 pandemic, the scientific world has been unified and relentless in its fight against the disease. This has been illustrated by the unprecedented speed at which vaccinations have been developed and approved. Prophylaxis alone, however, does not spell the end of a pandemic. Now, more than ever, it is imperative that we continue our remarkable progress by developing safe, accessible, and cost-effective methods for treating SARS-CoV-2 infections. Sadly, the countless lives lost to the disease have underlined the glaring lack of tried-and-true treatment options easily available today. Biologics, such as specific commercial antibody cocktails, are largely efficacious, but their accessibility is severely restricted by their costs of production.
The main stages of the SARS-CoV-2 lifecycle comprise the S-protein docking to host receptors, viral entry, gene translation/replication, virion packaging, and shedding. These stages are mirrored and mechanistically conserved in other highly virulent coronaviruses such as SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV. Each of these stages can be therapeutically targeted, and by building upon the already existing knowledge of coronaviruses, drugs can be developed and/or repurposed for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses alike, past, present, or future.
In this Special Issue, we invite researchers around the globe to submit their work on broad-spectrum coronavirus inhibitors. These may comprise directly acting antivirals (S-protein blockers, viral polymerase/protease inhibitors, etc.) or drugs targeting host proteins and pathways relevant to the viral lifecycle. Naturally, such drugs’ effects could extend beyond mildly and highly virulent coronaviruses into other virus families, lending them further value. All manner of work on these topics is welcomed, from proof-of-principle studies to clinical trial data, as well as expert reviews on the topic.
Dr. Albrecht von Brunn
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Viruses is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- SARS-CoV-2
- coronaviruses
- viral entry
- S-protein
- anti-CoV biologicals
- broad-spectrum coronavirus inhibitors
- antiviral drugs
- antivirals
- therapeutics
